Democrats, Republicans trade blame, insults after NC Board of Elections search tool goes down for much of state

RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — North Carolina Democrats and Republicans traded barbs on Saturday after a voter lookup tool on the state Board of Elections website was down for several hours, affecting much of the state.

The “voter lookup” tool on the North Carolina State Board of Elections, also known as the voter search, allows potential voters to find information about their polling places, among other data.

On Saturday, early voting was still underway ahead of Election Day on Tuesday.

The North Carolina Democratic Party first raised the issue, with an “unofficial” claim that the tool was not functioning in 94 out of 100 counties.

“When Dave Boliek first took over the Board of Elections, he removed career election professionals to fill his leadership with inexperienced, partisan appointees. Now, on the last day of early voting before our municipal elections, the NCSBE Voter Search tool went down,” said part of a statement from NCDP Chair Anderson Clayton.

Clayton also said there were problems at polling places where “poll workers are having difficulty quickly identifying and registering voters.”

Saturday night, NCBOE officials said the tool was back up and working. Patrick Gannon, spokesman for the NCBOE, said he could not confirm that 94 counties were not functioning earlier, but told CBS 17 it was down for most of the state.

Gannon also stated that there was “no disruption” at any polling place.

“Anderson Clayton, Chair of the NC Democratic Party, is either ignorant or intentionally spreading misinformation,” part of an emailed statement from Gannon said.

Republicans said significant work has been underway to update software — and blamed Democrats for neglect.

“Since his first day as executive director, Executive Director Sam Hayes has been working diligently to update election software that was neglected by the previous director and the then-Democratic majority,” part of a statement from Gannon said.

Democrats appeared to focus on Dave Bolick, the North Carolina State Auditor.

“It’s clear that Republicans were wrong when they said that making Boliek the only State Auditor in the country that controls elections would not impact voting or the quality of our systems,” Clayton said in a statement.

Matt Mercer of the Republicans also issued a statement on the matter — bringing up former Democratic Governor Roy Cooper.

“It’s insulting Democrats are trying to score cheap political points when Auditor Boliek has spent his tenure in office identifying their complete failure to manage the DMV in our state and just weeks ago found former Gov. Roy Cooper’s administration delayed $83 million in benefits to North Carolina families,” Mercer said in a statement to CBS 17.

The email from Gannon included some information about Tuesday’s voting.

Polls are open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Election Day. For more information, see: 10 Tips for Election Day Voters: 2025 Municipal Elections Edition.